Dumbledore's Descent
by siriusalive
Summary: Dumbledore is getting old. When he discovers he is losing hair, his descent starts. I don't know where this will be going.
1. Dumbledore the Bold Demur

I've got no idea what this will be about when it's finished. I just hope it will be finished someday... ^^

Disclaimer: I do not own... blabla... you know.

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**Prologue: Dumbledore the Bold Demur**

Whatever people thought about him, he did no longer care. That was what he thought, at least. But when Albus Dumbledore got up this morning, he already felt something was badly wrong. Something important. It was not until he took a look at the person staring back at him from inside the bathroom mirror however that the headmaster of Hogwarts realised what had made him feel so bad:

His beard, trimmed and tended until the other day now dangling shrivelled in front of the old man's chest. Also, some of Professor Dumbledore's hair seemed to have taken vacation – unfortunately for a longer time, it seemed. Unsettled, the man shook his head. Obviously he no longer was the wise, respectable wizard, at least not on the outside. Instead he had become nothing more than an old, bald doter nobody would take serious anymore.

Dumbledore knew, if anybody saw him like this, he was finished. The era of great Albus Dumbledore was over anyhow but until now the headmaster himself was the only person who knew. Thinking feverishly about how to conquer this crisis, the senescent wizard missed the sound of a visitor knocking at the door to his private chambers. "Yes, of course!", Dumbledore shouted, when a way of concealment came to his mind, just to turn around and see Minerva McGonagall entering the room.

"H-headmaster?", she stuttered, shocked by seeing how upset the elder was. Clearing her throat she concentrated the message she had to deliver. "Albus, the Daily Prophet is gathering staff in the Great Hall. Rumour has it a student died last night, when he left Hogwarts for a trip to the Forbidden Forest. To make matters worse, word has been spread he might have been attacked." Trying hard to retaining her composure she looked at Dumbledore, waiting for an answer.

"I'll... I'll deal with it in a second, Minerva. In a second...", the elder replied and searched the room for something to hide his thinned out hair. Moments later he ran down the stairs to the Great Hall, wearing nothing but his red dressing gown and a deep blue bobble hat. Followed closely by Professor McGonagall the headmaster finally reached the crowd of reporters. Many of them where already interviewing students, some of these crying, some confused because they did not know what all the excitement was about.

"Please", Dumbledore interrupted in a loud, tight voice. "All students immediately return to their common rooms", he ordered. At once, the press jumped at the headmaster, firing questions at him. Pictures were taken of the elderly man while Dumbledore desperately tried to calm the lurid reporters. His biggest problem was that he did not even really know about the incident they were talking about as he just heard the news about it himself. Only for a short moment Dumbledore had time to wonder why those people could know about a dead student before the headmaster himself knew. Halfway through the interview, which seemed to be quite similar to a cross-examination, Dumbledore somehow managed to lose his bobble hat.

The very next day every single newspaper had the same picture covering the front page: a desperate -looking Albus Dumbledore, barely dressed and his bald head uncovered raising his hands to calm the crowd in front of him. This gesture however made him seem more helpless than anything else. "Bold Demur" the headline said in big black letters, the "O" changing to an "A" and back from time to time.

"It's a shame", a croaking voice said, although the words oozed with irony. "According to several reputable newspapers, Albus Dumbledore, treasured headmaster of Hogwarts, was more worried about some reporters scaring the students than one of his fosterlings having been found dead the night before. Also, to quote my favourite article, Professor Dumbledore seemed to be quite 'jazzed' and seemed to be more a senile old man than the great and powerful wizard we all are used to see representing this school." The voice paused dramatically, before addressing Dumbledore directly, who was sitting on the opposite side of a large table, Professor McGonagall seated next to him. "Albus", the voice continued, "would you like to explain something to us?"

Dumbledore examined the close-lipped faces of all the other parents present. There was nothing to explain. He had been jazzed indeed. He actually had been more worried about his hair than even about the reporters pestering his students, but now was not the right time to admit that.

Whatever he would say, all those parents were sure to jump his throat for it. Therefore, Dumbledore remained silent. Therefore, Dumbledore followed his hair on their very long vacation.


	2. Dumbledore the Dumber Dole

Chapter One: Dumbledore the Dumber Dole

A week later Albus Dumbledore still had not left his bed for anything than using the bathroom. He had never intended to end his career but even if it had to end, why this way? There had always been people accounting him senile or even insane. It was is own fault, however, that now there was prove of it and by now the former headmaster was not far from believing the rumours himself.

What if he was truly insane? Was it not better for everyone if he just stayed in here then?

Still there were reporters knocking his door down just to get a statement of Dumbledore or even do an interview with him. The wizard would only be too pleased to say something – he just did not know what could save the situation and was ashamed of his behaviour the other day. To make matters worse, his hair was still dying down and by now there was more hair on his bed and pillow than left on his body. It felt itchy.

When Dumbledore could not stand the icky feeling of lying on hair anymore, he jumped out of bed and began pacing the room. "What is your problem anyway?", the man asked himself loudly. "Somebody will take your place. There were headmasters before you, there will be headmasters after you. It means a lot less work for you", he ensured himself. Nodding to confirm his words he straightened up. An exaltation rose in his chest, growing stronger until it covered the wizard's distress. Hastily he got dressed and than ran out of the front door, where a horde of reporters awaited him. "I am retiring", Dumbledore said calmly, freezing in his movement when the words reached his brain. Verbalized this way they sounded... just great! "I quit!", he screamed and started giggling excitedly. Then he ran off. Leaving his old life behind him as well as the stunned reporters. A few metres afar he jumped and clapped his hands in mid-air.

In his countless years of life, Dumbledore had never ever allowed himself to take some time off. Saving the wizarding world was no job allowing you to take vacations. But for once Dumbledore had done something good to himself and now he had all the free time he needed. Somebody else would save the world. It did not have to be him. No doubt came to the former headmaster's bald head.

His first trip brought him to Diagon Alley. Dumbledore did not notice the looks people gave him, when he hastily passed them in the Leaky Cauldron. Exiting through the opening brick-wall the elderly wizard started grinning like crazy. Still running he passed the cauldron shop and the apothecary, cold-shouldered Eeylops Owl Emporium and Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor to his left, Florish & Blott's and Madam Malkin's to his right. There, opposing the entrance to Knockturn Alley, was his destination: Gringotts, the Wizarding Bank.

When Dumbledore entered his gaze fell onto a copy of the Daily Prophet. Again, there was a picture of Albus Dumbledore on the front page, right above it was his name in big black letters. Just when the wizard was about to turn away, the letters changed to "Dumber Dole" and a subheading appeared saying: "Dumbledore now on the dole – one week without statement".

This was a little deflating... however it caused defiance to rise in Dumbledore and with a sweep of his wand the wizard set the rubbish bin the newspaper had been placed in on fire. When he came back out about half an hour later, his pockets filled with Galleons and Sickles, the rubbish bin was merely smoking.

"Now where do I go?", Dumbledore asked himself in a low voice, tipping his temple with his forefinger. At first he planned on travelling to Ibiza and party but on a second thought he found something much more obvious to do: why not try living in the Muggle world?


	3. Dumbledore the Bed Moulder

Chapter Two: Dumbledore the Bed Moulder

Why not try living in the Muggle world?

"This, my friend, is the best idea you had since deciding not to get yourself a dog", Dumbledore praised himself while he walked passed all the weirdly dressed people hurrying along the streets of London. At the moment, Dumbledore was still wearing his robe but nobody even noticed that. Obviously, it was normal to be a little bit off one's head in the Muggle world. Nonetheless the old man headed towards the "Darkside of Camden". The shop looked quite promising and although most of its customers seemed to be quite young, Dumbledore spotted a man in his seventies browsing through the display. The Darkside definitely was a place where Dumbledore would not attract too much attention.

"Excuse me", the wizard addressed the coeval man, "can you recommend me an appropriate outfit?" The stranger was a little shorter than Dumbledore was – and he was completely bald. Nevertheless he appeared youthfully and somehow... cool. Moments later the man had introduced himself as Hakon and his dark voice made him even more attractive to Dumbledore. "My name's Albus", the wizard replied. Hakon nodded and began searching the shelves, tugging out some shirts and trousers now and again. All of them seemed to be quite tight and too small for Dumbledore but he decided to try them on anyway.

About two hours later he left with Hakon by his side, dressed in tight, black leather trousers showing more than they hid. The wizard's chest was barely covered by something called "LoveSect Wifebeater" which was also black. It had two narrow bands of leather taking course from his shoulders over his nipples down to the end of the shirt. The rest of it was made of a semitransparent black cloth. This uncovered look made Dumbledore feel free and youthful and he felt sympathy for Hakon who picked just the right clothes for him. More of those where scattered in several plastic bags the two of them carried to Hakon's house. When Dumbledore had told his new-found friend that he had no place to stay, Hakon generously invited him to stay at his home.

The same night they where lying next to each other – without any wifebeaters or leather trousers.

Never before had Dumbledore been as happy as he was since he was living with Hakon. Two weeks had passed and still there was this special vibration in the air whenever the two man looked at each other. A few times the wizard had seen suspicious people outside the house, probably reporters for the Daily Prophet. However, he did not care about the articles they would write about him as long as he could stay with Hakon. And so he only quietly laughed when he accidentally saw the heading of the latest article about himself a few days later: Big black letters spelling "Dumbledore", changing into the words "Bed Moulder".


End file.
